The Paladin in the Abyss-Chapter 681 - 705

Chapter 681: 705

(Post first, revise later)

“Thank you,” Lancelot nodded to her, unable to help himself he asked, “These children…”

“We succubi can reproduce, but children are pure burdens. Most people lose interest in these little ones within days or months, leaving them to fend for themselves,” Gayka said as she picked up the smallest succubus girl, “Dors, come and say hello to this knight sir. He’s a very strong hero, you know. He can kill those big-bearded terrifying demons with a single sword!”

“Wow, you must be such a wicked ass!” exclaimed the girl, not even three feet tall, her eyes wide with amazement, “When I grow up a little more, I’d be willing to do you for free, mmm mmm mmm…”

“Shut up, you little bitch, you’re just supposed to say hello, not blurt out your wishes!” Gayka covered the little succubus’s mouth with her hand, flashing an embarrassed smile at Lancelot, “You see, these little ones really are quite a nuisance…”

“Why do you do this?” Lancelot’s expression softened, “Even risking your life to find food for them?”

“It’s all for profit, of course. It can’t be out of compassion or pity, right?” Gayka shrugged theatrically at Lancelot, “When these kids are big enough, they’ll receive clients in my tavern, and I’ll take a cut of the earnings…”

“You said you work at the tavern.”

“Being the boss is still work. Is there a problem?”

“No. What about Anastasia? Is she your partner?”

“She’s also one I’ve raised. I was very unhappy about her marrying that cripple. Why should that cripple get away without paying just because they exchanged a few totally insignificant vows? That cost me a good deal of income…” The succubus frowned in dissatisfaction, “What’s worse, those two fools actually got killed by demons, now I won’t even have the chance to call her stupid anymore.”

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“I see,” Lancelot nodded, “But now that your tavern has been destroyed, what do you plan to do next?”

“First, see if I can survive,” Gayka said with a bitter smile, “I hope you can get the information you want from Irina, and send those damned demons back to their home in Barto Hell as soon as possible. If you need any help, you can come to me anytime. Even if you don’t.”

“I understand, thank you.”

Lancelot bowed politely and headed with his partners towards the door indicated by the succubus. As they crossed the hall, the refugees seated on the sofas and couches quickly jumped up to make way, as if afraid Lancelot and his companions would find an excuse to extort them. Their concern was not unfounded; just a moment ago, the madam of the Carrion family had deliberately bumped into someone, and that extravagantly dressed person, upon seeing four Devilspawn with fresh blood on them, immediately took off two gemstone rings as an apology. However, Syrevey did not dare linger in Lancelot’s sight for long, and with his followers, he hastily disappeared behind another door.

Circling around the randomly placed furniture took the group some time, and at the end of the hall, there was another spiral staircase leading downward. This staircase was not nearly as long as the one they had just descended; they could see the light at the bottom exit as soon as they entered.

The second underground level of the temple appeared much more simplistic, with a ceiling height of less than ten feet and both the floor and the walls paved with plain stone tiles. Magic lanterns suspended from the ceiling cast a dim blue light in all directions. Directly in front of the staircase exit was a corridor with many opened rooms on both sides, filled with a variety of torture devices, designed to bind a person in various painful postures. However, Lancelot’s intuition told him the purpose of those devices was not solely for tormenting. At the end of the corridor, a large metal door was firmly closed, but Lancelot’s Spirit Perception told him there was indeed a familiar scent belonging to a succubus just beyond the door.

Lancelot raised his arm and politely knocked on the door with his forefinger, which was wrapped behind metal gauntlets. The crisp sound of the metal hitting echoed, and from that sound, Lancelot could discern that there was quite a spacious area beyond the portal.

“Who’s outside?” a deep, raspy, lifeless-sounding female voice asked in the curiously accented language of the Abyss.

“A human.” Lancelot turned to glance at his companions, “And a dwarf, an elf, a half-elf, and one more…”

“A shape-shifter!”

“Yes, a shape-shifter, or a monkey-man,” Lancelot shrugged toward the firmly closed gate, “We are mercenaries hired by Twin Bridges Town, seeking to infiltrate the Flame Palace secretly; perhaps you could offer us some assistance.”

“…Who sent you?”

“Generals of the Demon Coalition, including your… lover, ‘Destruction Flame’ Visuvius.”

A harsh metallic scraping noise followed, and the large door slowly rose upwards. The group stepped forward, quickly realizing they were at the bottom of a small-sized arena, with only a solitary figure in the spectator stands. At first glance, one might mistake that extremely beautiful figure as an embodiment of purity and grace, but at least Lancelot, Bruto, and Alamir could never mistake the creature for anything else—a Enruiyesi, also known as succubus, whose ancestors had been Battle Angels tainted in combat with demons, and who, after being ostracized by their former comrades, followed their leader Asmodis to the place later to be known as Barto Hell.

Not long after arriving in the Abyss, Lancelot had seen these beautiful Fiends and even had a confrontation with one of them. The succubus before him was quite different from the ones he had seen before. First of all, her wings were not black. Near the shoulders, they were a deep red resembling dried blood, then gradually lightening, turning a fiery orange-red at the tips. Secondly, she was not clad in full Plate Armor; instead, her lithe figure was wrapped in an almost transparent veil; she did not wear the signature horned helmet, leaving her messy, curly dark red hair to cascade over her bare shoulders. Most importantly, her eyes did not blaze with the angry flames that had left an indelible impression on Lancelot from her kin.

“Greetings, noble Enruiyesi,” Lancelot bowed courteously, “May I ask if you are Madam Irina?”

“By the Nine Hells, the scent of blood on you is truly overwhelming,” the Fallen Angel rose from a reclined position, frowning at Lancelot, “How many demons have you killed in the past week?”

“Not too many,” Lancelot scratched his head, feeling slightly guilty, “In the heat of battle, it’s hard to keep track.”

“It must be at least several hundred if not a thousand, you smell exactly like my so-called ‘lover’ when he returns from a campaign,” Irina’s tone grew progressively colder, “Every time I smell this odor, I feel like cutting off Visuvius’s head and spitting a few times into that hollow shell.”